17 - The role of nanostructures in various wound dressings

Abstract

Preventing infection and retaining sufficient moisture around wounds are the most challenging issues in wound healing. This chapter describes the fabrication of dressings for the treatment of wounds using various nanostructured materials. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) have been effectively used in wound dressings due to their large surface area, which gives significant anti-inflammation, antimicrobial and wound-healing properties. Furthermore, Ag NPs have received substantial attention in wound healing due to their faster release of Ag ions than bulk Ag. Besides nanoparticles of silver (NS), nature-inspired materials such as chitin and chitosan, individually or associated with NS and other metal ion entities, have been employed in wound dressings because of their antifungal and bactericidal efficacy and their ability to maintain oxygen permeation into wounds and burns. A number of chitin- and chitosan-based nanohydrogels (e.g., membranes, fibers, sponges and scaffolds) have been fabricated to improve the wound-healing capacity of dressings. The physicochemical properties of NS and chitosan–NS wound dressings have been observed using scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, and their chemical and microstructural properties have been analysed using energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, infrared resonance spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. This chapter discusses advanced findings of different NS and chitosan–NS formulations, and their efficacy and safe usage in antiseptic and antibacterial dressings to treat wounds and burns. It anticipates that wound dressings supported by chitosan/chitin–Ag NPs have enormous potential for other biological applications in the field of medical sciences.